First Meeting
by AngelofBeauty88
Summary: A small side story for my fic, 'Requiem for a Shinigami'. A future traitor meets a little girl on the day of her parents' funeral. A simple meeting that bond them together in the future.


His eyes were almost emotionless as he watched the funeral service from a distance, his reiatsu sealed off in his gigai. It was the first time he had seen a western funeral, compared to how things were done back home. The captain waited a few minutes before he walked to the entrance of the church, seeing a photograph that had a man and a woman in wedding attire, a garland of white roses and carnations framing the picture. An iei, no doubt. A portrait of the two who were being laid to rest. The young man had slightly tanned skin, with short dark hair and indigo colored eyes. The woman had bright wavy golden colored hair and bright green eyes. Their names were printed on programs that he could not read easily. Still, he knew their names. He had only seen them once before, the night they died. He wasn't sure himself why he had decided to sneak to the Living World, take a 'formal' gigai, and showed up for the services. A part of him felt that he'd see an 'old friend' if he attended. But a part of him was curious as to what was to become of the young couple he had seen a few days prior. He glanced around at the other guests before he took a seat in the very back.

He listened to the service, listening as some of the mourners came up and paid their respects to the deceased couple before finally noticing an older gentleman in the front row. A faint smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth, recognizing his former captain, Misaki Kurokage. Whether the other man had used a gigai that left him human or he was only hiding his appearance, he could still tell that none of his skills would have diminished over the decades that Misaki had been AWOL. No, if anything, he'd only gotten stronger in that time. He was sure of that. His eyes then noticed an older woman seated beside him. Despite her aging appearance, she was still a rather lovely woman. Misaki's wife no doubt, he figured. The brunette stood up after a while, deciding that he'd stayed long enough to show his respects. He was about to leave his gigai when he felt a fluctuating spiritual pressure coming from nearby. Following the reiatsu he felt, he headed to the back of the church and followed it to a small grove.

The brunette was surprised as he found a small girl with bright golden hair and indigo eyes crying beneath the trees. While they were technically still on the church grounds, the child was still a good ways away from any adults, hiding among the trees and crying her eyes out. No doubt she was the daughter of the deceased couple whom everyone was gathered for. She couldn't be more than 6 or 7 years old. She was wearing a rather cute black dress, but considering the occasion, he guessed it was the only black dress she had. "What are you doing out here, little one?" He asked, moving closer and kneeling down in front of her. "Please go away…" She said, looking at him with tear filled eyes.  
"You shouldn't be out here all alone. I'm sure your family will be looking for you. You wouldn't want them to worry." He said, offering a hand to the child.  
"Mommy… Mommy and Daddy…" The girl began to say before she started to cry again. "They're not coming back anymore."  
He couldn't explain why, but he felt a need to comfort the mourning child. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her, rubbing her back in a soothing motion. "It's ok. Go ahead and let it out. It'll hurt more if you keep it inside." He told her, allowing her to cry on his shoulder until she finally calmed down. "You know, princesses shouldn't cry. It messes up their pretty faces." He said with a soft smile. "And you seem like a little princess to me."  
The little girl sniffled a bit. "Daddy… Daddy would say the same thing." She said, trying to stop her tears completely.  
"I think your father was right." He said, helping the girl stand up before standing himself, brushing off a bit of dirt off his pants. "You are a little princess." He complimented.  
His comment and compliment brought a small smile to her face. "My name is Ariel. What's yours?" She asked him.  
The captain only shook his head a little. "I don't think you'll be able to pronounce my name." He told her. "And I think your family will be worried if you don't head back soon." He offered a hand to the girl, who slowly accepted his hand and let him lead her back to the chapel.

Upon reaching the front of the church, he let go of her hand and knelt in front of her. "I'm afraid I have to go now, Ariel."  
"You're not gonna come back to our house like the others?" She asked him, looking saddened.  
"I'm sorry. But I have my job to get to. I will hope to see you again." He said, giving her a soft kiss on her forehead. "I'm sure we'll meet each other again."  
Ariel blushed as he kissed her forehead and gave a little smile. "Of course we will."  
He smiled at her and stood up, turning to leave so that he could return to Soul Society before too many noticed that he was missing.  
"Thank you Mr. Ghost!" The blonde called to him, waving to him with a smile.  
The brunette turned to look back at her and chuckled at the name she'd given him. He was also impressed that she had somehow figured out that he wasn't human. He watched as she went back inside, obviously to find her grandparents who may or may not have noticed she had been missing. After waiting a few minutes, he shed his gigai and opened the Senkaimon, returning to Soul Society and his Division barracks.

* * *

"Welcome back, Aizen-taicho." Momo said, bowing to her captain. "Did you finish what you needed to do in the Living World?" She asked, going to prepare some tea for her captain.  
The brunette captain nodded to his vice-captain. "I did. It was a rather interesting trip." He said, recalling his words to the little blonde girl. _'I'm sure we'll meet each other again.'  
_

Aizen did meet her again.

Over a decade later, he finally met Ariel again.

He had betrayed Soul Society, and become leader of the Arrancar.

She had grown up, and become the new Captain of Squad 5.

He had become her enemy.

But she had become his desire.


End file.
